In 1994, Brian Scudamore was the CEO of a company with just 11 employees. He woke up one day and didn’t like the people he worked with so he fired everyone working at 1-800-GOT-JUNK. Today, that company does over $200 million in annual revenue and CEO Brian Scudamore credits his ‘Beer and BBQ’ method of hiring.
Brian recently spoke with Kathleen Elkins at CNBC about his ‘Beer and BBQ’ method of hiring new employees, and frankly, I think it makes all the sense in the world. You can have the most qualified applicant in the world, but if they don’t meet the criterium below then it can make for a very icy and dysfunctional work atmosphere.
It originated after Scudamore cleaned house in 1994. “One of the things I realized that day was that I wasn’t enjoying working with these people,” he says, so when he started re-hiring, he made it a point to ask himself, “Would I have a beer with this person? Would I have them over for a barbecue?”
Scudamore draws a parallel between hiring great people and finding great friends: “You don’t sit there and make a checklist and go ask interview questions [when finding friends]. You just get to know someone in a casual environment like you would over maybe a beer, and you trust your gut.
“Do you like this person? Do you find them interesting? Are they asking you questions? Are they a likable person? And do they have a passion for something?
I know that I want people, as friends and as employees, that are ambitious and driven and have a zest for life.”
“What we’re looking for is, ‘Does our community make sense?'” says Scudamore. “‘Are we all guided by that same principal of us building something much bigger together?’ And the beer and barbecue filter seems to work like magic for people because it’s such a simple, easy to grasp concept and forces people to do a gut check.” (via CNBC)
When hiring someone, or trying to get a job, it’s alway beneficial to think of how you’ll fit into the corporate atmosphere. Can you work with the person sitting across the desk from you every day? Is this office a good fit?
At the end of the day, there are a shit ton of qualified applicants in the world. So the ‘Beer and BBQ’ method is all about placing those qualified individuals into the right working environment. I dig it, but what do you bros think?
To read the full interview on CNBC just follow that link!
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